Raising NC tanning-bed age discussed in House

Published: Tuesday, February 19, 2013 at 1:23 p.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, February 19, 2013 at 1:23 p.m.

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Some North Carolina legislators say young people should be barred from getting bronzed with tanning beds because their risks for cancer are too great.

A House committee considered a bill Tuesday to prohibit tanning salons from having customers under age 18. Current law prohibits anyone 13 or younger from using salon equipment unless a doctor gives the child a written prescription. Children 14 to 17 must have a parent's permission.

The bill has the weight of several medical and cancer-prevention groups behind it. Dermatologist Dr. Kelly Nelson with Duke University Medical Center told the committee she's seen too many women with melanoma and other skin cancers that used tanning beds as teenagers.

A vote was delayed after a spokesman for an industry-funded institute argued that bill supporters were misinforming lawmakers.

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